Conduit replacement serves as training exercise

The first week of school for Otero Junior College this year had its complications, but the electric line crew under Electric Superintendent Reuben DeLeon was able to get the campus back in service. McBride Hall was the only building that was out of service due to the failed conductor.

The first week of school for Otero Junior College this year had its complications, but the electric line crew under Electric Superintendent Reuben DeLeon was able to get the campus back in service. McBride Hall was the only building that was out of service due to the failed conductor. As the crews worked at replacing the conductor, on the third day, another fault occurred on the same phase on the north side of the campus. The failed conductor at that location was isolated and power was restored. McBride was off from Tuesday to Friday morning. The transformer was also changed at the northern location.

"People ask why we have five men standing around an open hole," said DeLeon. "Four of them are being trained." He went on to explain that working on an underground system is much more complex than working on an overhead system, where visual clues help with the location of the problem. "We always take our time to be sure all operations are safe for the crew," said DeLeon. Each separate section has to be checked to locate the problem. He brought a section of the old conduit pipe to illustrate the problem. "It has probably been there since the beginning of the college," he said. The wires were 10 or 12 years old.

The line crew continues to replace the steel poles along third street with aluminum poles, which will not rust. Tree trimming is almost finished for the year, with just the industrial park to finish. The crew added a transformer between Fifth and Sixth on Carson and Belleview to pick up some added load at that location. They also replaced a transformer at City Park, where a bird had come in contact with arrester and transformer.

Director of Water and Wastewater Joe Kelley has had an eventful month. The crew replaced the fire hydrant at Ninth and Santa Fe and installed a new fire hydrant at the college behind the Student Center. A two-inch tap blew out of the water main near Third and Smithland, a tough repair job involving replacement of old lines. Water lines are complete at the Oliver Manufacturing addition. The crew is cleaning the RO membranes at the water treatment plant.

A pre-construction meeting is planned for Friday on the Town of Swink's water connection to La Junta. The sewer crew completed 31,000 feet of the annual main line cleaning in August. Parker Ag hauled 106,000 gallons of solids from the wastewater treatment plant. The department is preparing for an Environmental Protection Agency inspection due in two weeks.

City Engineer Dan Eveatt reported business is booming in the trash department, all figures up from the same time last year. All equipment is up and running. He reminded the group that electronic waste may no longer be dumped in household trash, but should be recycled (Wednesday at Swink, Clean Valley Recycling).